No rest for Woods with lucrative China event in sights (Reuters) Updated: 2005-11-08 10:35
Just as Spaniard Seve Ballesteros was able to nullify his erratic driving in
the late 1970s and early 1980s with miraculous recoveries, so too Woods has been
able to stay in regular contention for titles despite his radar being off-beam.
The 29-year-old American, unquestionably the best player in the game
since Jack Nicklaus, is known for his unwavering desire to win, his prodigious
length off the tee, his creative short game, his work ethic and attention to
detail.
However, his ability to conjure Houdini-like escapes from thick rough or from
under the trees has time and again secured him pars or even birdies.
At last week's season-ending Tour Championship in Atlanta, where he finished
second behind surprise winner Bart Bryant, Woods led the driving distance
category with a massive average of 324 yards but was rock-bottom in driving
accuracy.
SEVE-STYLE MAGIC
Not that it mattered too much. On more than one occasion at East Lake Golf
Club, Woods missed the fairway but ended up so close to the green that he was
able to birdie the hole with a touch of Seve-style magic.
His 2005 PGA Tour campaign was no different. He won six times in 21 starts
despite languishing 188th out of 202 in driving accuracy with a percentage of
54.6.
He finished second in the driving charts with an average of 316.1 yards but,
most importantly, led the scoring averages with 68.66 and also the birdie
average with 4.57 per round.
The 10-times major winner ended up sixth in greens in regulation, with a
percentage of 69.9, and was joint fifth in the putting charts with an average of
1.731 per hole.
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